Suggested Books

PARTNERS

The Australian Yowie: Mysterious Legends of a Tribe of Hairy People

In 1804, the book Modern Geography –a Description of the Empires, Kingdoms, States and Colonies: with the Oceans, Seas and Isles: In all Parts of the World was published by John Pinkerton. In it there is a comment regarding a population of Aborigines that shared Sydney Harbor with another tribe. They were described as flat-nosed with wide nostrils; thick eyebrows and sunken eyes. Their mouths were of ‘prodigious width’ with thick lips and prominent jaws. The Aborigines regarded them as another people entirely: the Yahoos or Yowies meaning “hairy people”.

The Two Yowie Groups of Australia

The Kuku Yalanji Tribe of Tropical North Queensland, Australia believes in the existence of this creature. They claim to have coexisted with the Yowie for centuries and have a long and detailed history of attacks from them in their legends. The Yowie is their equivalent to what Native American tribes in Northwest America call Sasquatch.

Historical accounts refer to two types of Yowie in Australia with the most prominent species being Gigantopithecus. This is the larger species said to grow between 6 and 10 feet tall, weighing up to 1,000 lbs. It is described as a cryptic and said to resemble a huge hair covered ape-like man with talons for fingers. Compared to the North American Sasquatch, it is believed to have more of a primate look to the face and head and walk upright. Its temperament has also been described as more aggressive and dangerous towards humans. The other species of Yowie is described as being smaller, between 4-5 feet tall. While most people are skeptical of the accounts, some believe it is an ancient species of hominid that has avoided extinction. These hominids have been depicted in local cave art as tall, hairy figures beside smaller Aboriginal figures.

Contact with the Yowie: Sightings Across the Years

European contact with the Yowie is said to have begun with the arrival of the First Fleet in Sydney Cove in 1788. During the early colonial era, Aborigines often warned British settlers to beware of an ape-like creatures lurking in the rugged mountains and deep forests of the continent. One particular account, which reached London in a letter in 1820, told of an encounter in 1789 by convicts and a party of marines while on a hunting trip. The men killed a bunch of wallabies and were returning to the settlement when, atop a nearby hill, they saw an animal observing them among the trees which they later claimed was twice the height of an ordinary man.

The first southern sighting in Australia was reported on Philip Island, Victoria in 1849. During this encounter, several people observed a creature, said to be between 6-7 ft tall, resembling a cross between a baboon and a man. At the time, the creature was said to be sitting on the edge of a lake when it was shot at.

Arguably one of the stranger and more controversial sightings, comes in the form of a photograph from 1936. It is one of a series of images taken by Rich Jones while working at an isolated loggers camp in Batlow, located in the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales, 450km (279.6 miles) south-west of Sydney. The image appears to show a large creature sitting with his hands in his lap, behind two men on a wooden log. Further analysis of the photo purportedly shows the head area resting near its chest looking down. This is due to “tree line matrixing”.

The mysterious photograph taken by Rich Jones in Batlow, New South Wales that some say was a Yowie (1932) ( Youtube)

Another well known incident occurred in December 1979 when a local couple, Leo and Patricia George, ventured into the forest and came across the carcass of a mutilated kangaroo. They later claimed that the perpetrator was only forty feet away and described a creature ten feet tall, covered with hair, that stopped to stare back at them before disappearing back into the brush.

Controversial Australian Specimens Found to Be Fact

The Yowie isn’t the only creature in Australian history to have been met with skepticism over its existence. When European settlers sent a specimen of the Platypus back to London, scientists were baffled at the egg-laying, duck-billed, beaver-tailed, otter-footed mammal and concluded it was some kind of fake. Only when more specimens arrived did the scientific community accept that it was real.

Painting of a platypus, John Lewin, New South Wales, Australia (1808) ( Wikipedia Commons )

Modern Yowie Sightings

Today, sightings of the Yowie are said to take place in the south and central Coastal regions of New South Wales and Queensland's Gold Coast (The Blue Mountain area just outside Sydney is a hot spot).

One expert on the topic, Rex Gilroy, claims to have investigated over 3,000 cases and believes the Yowie is related to the North American Bigfoot. By comparison, in North America there have been thousands of Bigfoot sighting in modern history (3,313 in 92 years according to one website). Gilroy’s research for various newspaper and magazines in the 1970s introduced the topic to the public. Despite the numerous sightings and eye-witness accounts, some researchers have come to the conclusion that evidence for the Yowie is so rare that the mythical being is probably some kind of hoax.

In 2006, a book was published with everything there is to know on the subject entitled, The Yowie: In Search of Australia's Bigfoot by authors Tony Healy and Paul Cropper. Healy and Cropper admit there is little evidence to support the existence of such a creature. No bones have been found, tracks are rare, very little film or photos exist, just like the Sasquatch phenomenon in North America.

Yowie sightings continue. Here are three recent examples: A seven foot Yowie was allegedly spotted in 2016 by a bushwalker in the Darling Downs' mountain ranges near Toowoomba. That Yowie seemed disinterested in the woman, and is said to have “sat down in the long grass and ignored her.” Then the Ipswich Yowie may have made an appearance in a 2017 You Tube video filmed by a man who had only intended to capture footage of a large flock of cockatoos. Finally, just a couple of weeks ago , a Yowie sighting was made 15-20km north of Roma, in which an approximately 152 cm (five foot) tall “auburn haired creature” was seen standing beside a dead kangaroo on the Carnarvon Highway.

Some of the Many Versions of Bigfoot/Yowies

Tales of large, hairy hominids are universal, timeless and found in the myths and folklores of cultures across the world. Called the “Yeti" in the Himalayas, the "Chi- Chi” in China, the “Almas” in Mongolia, “Kapre” in the Philippines, “Forestmen" in Vietnam, the list of countries with stories of hairy man-apes inhabiting remote parts of the globe is endless. Australia is just one of the lesser known areas where reported encounters with the legendary Bigfoot-like creatures have taken place.

Bryan Hill

Bryan graduated with a Bachelor of Art in History from Suffolk University and has a background in museum volunteering and as well as working with children’s groups at the Museum of Science and the National Park Service. He has traveled... Read More

I admit the term ,"They"" as someone with holding information use to drive me nuts. Then I actually had an opportunity to observe some of "They" in actual operation. We all know government agencies with hold information from the public "for their own good"; maybe yes and maybe No, perhaps we should be allowed to determine this for ourselves. Then there's the scholastic , "They", the upper echelon "egg heads" who rule whole departments in educational institutions of higher learning (colleges and universities). I have personally seen this scenario take place, having taught in college level for several years. Professor Airhead Stubornmother rules his department. Because he "teaches" in a high ranking University his thoughts and theories are taken very very seriously. Woe betide and poor researcher that finds Prof Stubornmother's theories to be off tract by new discoveries. New discoveries are quickly branded fakes and the researcher is called a hoaxster and often drummed out of the educational system entirely. Yes, I have personally witnessed this disgraceful attitude. Sometimes new findings are years away from acceptance because of a few higher up professors who can't stand to see their personal favorite theory go up in smoke. On the other hand these "eggheads" have devoted so much time and bluster in these theories that seeing them disproven will often lose Prof Stubornmother his chairmanship of the department so they also have their reputation and livelihood to protect. So peer review has its place but unfortunately the upper levels of department chairmen are so interwoven and inbred that new ideas and proofs have a serious climb through red tape and outright bullying to ever get their ideas even looked at. Evolution is a great example. No I am not a creationist, but there are so many holes in Darwin's theory it looks like a sieve. Of course evolution takes place. Farmers have been forcing it for centuries. But evolution as Darwin saw it does NOT fit the big picture. But woe be to any would be researcher who questions any portion of the theory, "Written in stone".. So I hope I have explained just who "They" might be.

If "they" have been covering this up and were capable of covering this up against peoples will for whatever reason then why are we hearing about it at all now ? I can't think of any practical purpose for covering up this sort of information anyway. What harm would it have done ? What harm has it done now that we are hearing about it now... ? No harm at all.

You know some things take time to be discovered or learned and understood... We aren't infused with knowledge of everthing at birth.

Viral Articles

The swastika is a symbol that was used in the 20th century by of one of the most hated men ever to have lived, a symbol that now represents the slaughter of millions of people and one of the most destructive wars on Earth.

Myths & Legends

The swastika is a symbol that was used in the 20th century by of one of the most hated men ever to have lived, a symbol that now represents the slaughter of millions of people and one of the most destructive wars on Earth.

Human Origins

Most people who have the Rh blood type are Rh-positive. There are also instances, however, where people are Rh-Negative. Health problems may occur for the unborn child of a mother with Rh-Negative blood when the baby is Rh-Positive.

Our Mission

At Ancient Origins, we believe that one of the most important fields of knowledge we can pursue as human beings is our beginnings. And while some people may seem content with the story as it stands, our view is that there exists countless mysteries, scientific anomalies and surprising artifacts that have yet to be discovered and explained.

The goal of Ancient Origins is to highlight recent archaeological discoveries, peer-reviewed academic research and evidence, as well as offering alternative viewpoints and explanations of science, archaeology, mythology, religion and history around the globe.

We’re the only Pop Archaeology site combining scientific research with out-of-the-box perspectives.

By bringing together top experts and authors, this archaeology website explores lost civilizations, examines sacred writings, tours ancient places, investigates ancient discoveries and questions mysterious happenings. Our open community is dedicated to digging into the origins of our species on planet earth, and question wherever the discoveries might take us. We seek to retell the story of our beginnings.